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Bird flu outbreak in Burma worries Indian traders
Subhaschandra MMizzima News (www.mizzima.com)
March 2, 2007 - The detection of a fresh bird flu epidemic in Burma is causing anxiety to Indian traders and officials, who agreed on Thursday to increase items for trading with Burma in order to boost border trade between the two countries.
In a bid to give Indo-Burmese border trade a leg up, the visiting 31-member Burmese trade delegation on Thursday held a series of discussions with Indian traders and officials in Imphal, capital of the Indo-Burmese border state, Manipur.
While agreeing with the Burmese delegation's proposal to increase trade items, Indian officials and traders objected to the idea of increasing import and export of livestock through border trade points, apprehensive of bird flu outbreak spreading from Burma to India.
An Indian veterinary expert Dr P Rajen told the meeting that export and import of eggs, chicken and other livestock from Burma has been banned by the Government of India as a preventive measure.
"The latest information we received from the government of India said the ban is still in force in view of the report of resurfacing of bird flu epidemic in [Rangoon]," Dr. Rajen said.
The Indian government, since 2004, had imposed a ban on import of livestock from Burma through border points after India was hit by the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus.
However, the Burmese delegation denied any recent outbreak of bird flu in Burma, saying the latest out break was in March 2006, which the authorities had immediately been able to control.
U Aung Min, Director of Livestock said, "We've no information as yet [on the outbreak of bird flu]." He and the delegation left for India a week ago.
Meanwhile, Burma's former capital Rangoon on Wednesday was hit by an outbreak of the deadly bird flu. Authorities aided by UN agencies have reportedly slaughtered more than 1,500 birds in three districts of Rangoon, where the outbreak was reported.
However, after a long discussion, both Indian and Burmese traders agreed to take up necessary steps to prevent such epidemic in the future and also agreed to increase trading items that are not included in the current list.
The Burmese delegation, which arrived in India on February 28, during a 10- day tour will also visit other northeastern states of India including Guwahati, capital of Assam state and Aizawl of Mizoram.
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